I'm wanting to install a water softener. Can I merge the drain pipe from the softener with the line coming from the relief valve on the top of the water heater? I'm concerned about the elevation of where I would need to merge the pipe, in respect to the exit port on the softener.
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Are you talking about the exhaust pipe where the "smoke" from the gas flame exits? Or are you talking about the drain line attached to the pressure relief valve?– longneckDec 24 '14 at 18:36
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@longneck lol no sorry the discharge line coming from the relief valve– rhill45Dec 24 '14 at 18:48
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I have one. And gas heat, and a gas stove until my wife decided she wanted a glass top stone.– longneckDec 24 '14 at 18:51
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I'm unable to quote any code but it seems to me like this is a bad idea. Hopefully someone else can supply a definitive answer.– longneckDec 24 '14 at 19:04
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The down pipe from your water heater relief valve should not be plumbed into a drain. the output end may be hovering over a floor drain but not hard plumbed to drain lines. If the relief blows off due to high pressure (possibly steam) it could rupture a hard plumbed drain line.
There are two drain lines from a water softener; one over-flo from the brine tank and one off the control valve. The over-flo line could go to the same place as the heater relief output. The line from the control valve will have a significant pressure while the softener is in recharge or backwash modes and should be hard plumbed through a check valve to your drain piping to sewer or septic.
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Thanks good info here. It's the high pressure line from the resin tank I was worried about. I'm finding a lot of plumbers who just hover it 6" over a floor drain like the down pipe from my heater is. However the pipe would have to elevate significantly before it meets the with the water heater pipe.– rhill45Dec 25 '14 at 4:42